26 November – Coronavirus – Update

FAO: All Early Years, Children’s Social Care, Schools and Further Education Providers

 
 

4885b2b0-c07d-4483-bdb1-f6aedad62497-dfe_27px_x2

Department for Education
 
 
 

 
 

This is your email to keep you updated on the government’s response to coronavirus (COVID-19). If you have colleagues who would like to receive this email directly, please ask them to use this subscription form.

Today’s email includes:

  • information on arrangements for COVID-19 testing during the holidays and on return in January for all educational and childcare settings in England
  • information on funding for anti-bullying projects for schools and colleges
  • information on the National Tutoring Programme grant funding payments for schools
  • a reminder for schools and colleges on applying for funded support for a digital education platform
  • a reminder to schools to order new devices via the Get help with technology service

Arrangements for COVID-19 testing during the holidays and on return in January for all educational and childcare settings in England

We want to update you on the plans for COVID-19 testing in educational and childcare settings over Christmas and on return in January.

We would like all secondary schools to prepare to test their pupils once on-site on return in January. We understand that this is a significant additional ask but testing continues to play a vital role in keeping COVID-19 out of schools. Testing all pupils in school boosts testing participation and will help reduce transmission after a period of social mixing over the school holidays. Tests, PPE and funding to support your workforce will be provided as before. After this test on return, pupils should continue to test in line with government guidelines.

To enable testing on return in January, you will need to order sufficient test kits by Tuesday 30 November.

Please check your test kit stock levels and make an order of test kits so that both staff and students are able to test over the holiday period if required, and for the first week of January, using home test kits. Secondary schools will also need to order ATS kits and sufficient home test kits to ensure secondary pupils can continue to test in line with government guidelines. Please complete this stock-take form and ensure your stock is in date. Please specify when your setting closes for the holidays in the ‘delivery instructions’ when placing your order to ensure you receive your delivery.

Ofsted has confirmed that secondary schools will not be inspected, unless there are urgent concerns, during the first week of schools’ return in January.

Updated guidance is available on the document sharing platform to support you to prepare for asymptomatic testing when you return in January, including (for secondary schools) an asymptomatic testing site.

For those in settings closing over Christmas, all staff and students should test over the holidays in line with national guidance. This means that they should test if they will be in a high-risk situation that day, and before visiting people who are at higher risk of severe illness if they get COVID-19.

For settings remaining open over the Christmas period (such as private nurseries or adult education providers), staff and students should continue to test at home twice per week over the holiday period.

FE and HE students, and staff in all educational and childcare settings, should take one self-test at home either the evening or morning before they return in January. Then they should continue to test in line with government guidelines.

Funding for anti-bullying projects for schools and colleges

On Tuesday 16 November, the Department announced funding for five leading organisations, worth over £1 million in total, to support schools and colleges in championing tolerance and respect as part of their responsibility to tackle all forms of bullying. You can contact these organisations to request support:

  • The Diana Award’s free Anti-Bullying Ambassador Programme – engages young people, parents, carers and teachers to change the attitudes, behaviour and culture of bullying by building skills and confidence to address different situations, both online and offline. Find out more and sign up your school.
  • Diversity Role Models – supplies schools with training and resources which ensure staff have the knowledge and skills to tackle and prevent bullying and create inclusive school cultures through celebrating diversity and promoting respect for protected characteristics. Schools can register on the Diversity Role Models website.
  • The Anti-Bullying Alliance – the ‘United Against Bullying’ programme is a new whole-school anti-bullying programme. It supports schools to reduce bullying and improve the wellbeing of all children, focusing on those most at risk. Visit their website for more information and to register for the programme.
  • EqualiTeach – is a not-for-profit equality and diversity training and consultancy organisation which works with schools across the UK. EqualiTeach’s Equally Safe programme will see the organisation delivering an in-depth programme of work with 80 schools per year, over three years. More information is available on their website.
  • The Anne Frank Trust UK – through ‘History for Today’ and ‘Voices for Equality’ programmes, young people will have an opportunity to make a difference within your school community challenging and reflecting upon all forms of prejudice and discrimination. They also offer full class workshops based on contemporary themes. Please email education@annefrank.org.uk for further information.

National Tutoring Programme (NTP) grant funding payments

Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) staff are already permitted to undertake tutoring, but from Monday 8 November schools have also been able to book non-QTS staff to participate on the school-led tutoring training course to qualify as National Tutoring Programme (NTP) school-led tutors.

Schools can register and request training if they have not already done so. If you would like to find out more about the NTP in your region, you can view event dates and register to join one of the series of regional webinars hosted by an expert panel of educators.

Last chance for schools and colleges to apply for funded support for a digital education platform

Schools and colleges have until Tuesday 30 November 2021 to apply for funding for expert technical support to help you set up secure user accounts for Google and Microsoft’s education platforms.

You can apply for government funded support to be set up on one of two digital education platforms: Google Workspace for Education or Microsoft Office 365 Education. Our guidance provides more details on how to apply, advice on how you can make the most of these platforms and how to choose the most appropriate platform.

Since April 2020, almost 7,000 schools have applied to be set up on a platform and over 2.34 million accounts have been created. Having access to a platform will save you time but will also give the staff and students at your school or college the chance to continue with their work and learning whilst in the classroom and at home. If your school or college has not yet applied to the programme and are still interested in the offer, please apply before Tuesday 30 November 2021.

Remember to order new devices via the Get help with technology service

In October, the department announced the provision of a further 500,000 laptops and tablets through the Get help with technology service, so that disadvantaged children and young people can access remote education and social care services.

We have now invited all organisations with an allocation to order. We sent instructions about how to order to the email addresses provided in the Get help with technology service. If you have not received this, please check your junk and spam folders before contacting us.

If your preferred device type is in stock, you should order as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

You can now also apply for devices for children who have joined your school or college under Operation Warm Welcome.

Up to 6,000 devices are available for children in years 3 to 13 or in 16 to 19 education, who have arrived in the UK under Operation Warm Welcome, via the Get help with technology service.

If you need to order devices for these children, please sign into the Get help with technology service and follow our Operation Warm Welcome guidance.

The information below has not changed since our last update

Department for Education COVID-19 helpline

The Department for Education COVID-19 helpline and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Advice Service, (formally the Public Health England (PHE) Advice Service) are available to answer any questions you have about COVID-19 relating to education and childcare settings and children’s social care.

Department for Education guidance

Our guidance to support education and childcare providers, local authorities and parents during the COVID-19 pandemic can be accessed using the links below:

Unsubscribe from the daily email

You will continue to receive this daily email if you have supplied your contact information as part of your formal Department for Education establishment record (for example, in get information about schools) or you are registered as a team leader in the Test and Trace service.

If your contact information is not held formally by us, you can unsubscribe using this unsubscribe form.